Ukrainecast

The US and Russia have been holding high-level talks in Saudi Arabia for the first time in years.

General Sir Richard Shirreff, a former Nato commander, is in the studio to give his reaction.

And Steve Rosenberg, BBC Russia editor, joins us to explain why the Kremlin is “cockahoop” about the news.

Today’s episode, recorded on Tuesday afternoon, is presented by Victoria Derbyshire and Vitaly Shevchenko.

You can join the Ukrainecast discussion on Newscast’s Discord server here: tinyurl.com/ukrainecastdiscord

European leaders have met in Paris for an emergency summit on the war in Ukraine.

Leaving the meeting, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz called discussions on sending peacekeeping troops to Ukraine "premature" and "inappropriate". Earlier UK PM Keir Starmer said he was ready to send such troops from the UK if and when the war ends.

So could we see European boots on the ground in Ukraine? Matthew Savill, from RUSI, is in the studio to discuss whether it’s possible, and what this might look like.

We also look ahead to the meeting tomorrow between Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Saudi Arabia with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Today’s episode is presented by Victoria Derbyshire and Vitaly Shevchenko.

You can join the Ukrainecast discussion on Newscast’s Discord server here: tinyurl.com/ukrainecastdiscord

The Ukrainian president and US vice-president have been meeting at the Munich Security Conference. Vitaly and James chew over what was discussed, and what it all means for the future of Ukraine.

Today’s episode is presented by Vitaly Shevchenko and James Landale.

You can join the Ukrainecast discussion on Newscast’s Discord server here: tinyurl.com/ukrainecastdiscord

What’s been the reaction in Ukraine to President Trump’s plans to end the war, following his phone calls with Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky? We hear from Kyiv mum Iryna and 27 year old account manager Andrew.

And we assess what role Europe could play going forward, following a busy day of diplomacy at a Nato defence chiefs summit in Brussels.

Today’s episode is presented by Victoria Derbyshire and Vitaly Shevchenko.

In a pivotal day for the war in Ukraine, Donald Trump has agreed to ‘work together’ with Vladimir Putin to end the conflict. Immediately after the call with Putin, Trump spent an hour on the phone with Volodymyr Zelensky.

Earlier in the day, the new US defence secretary Pete Hegseth told a meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group in Brussels that it was unrealistic that Ukraine could return to its pre-2014 borders and he ruled out NATO membership for Ukraine.

BBC Security Correspondent, Frank Gardner joins Victoria and Vitaly to discuss the latest developments.

You can join the Ukrainecast discussion on Newscast’s Discord server here: tinyurl.com/ukrainecastdiscord

Is the Trump administration gearing up for talks on Ukraine? Victoria and Vitaly are joined in the studio to discuss this by Christina Lamb of The Sunday Times.

She also talks about the posthumous release of a new book by her friend Victoria Amelina, who was killed in Kramatorsk in 2023. ‘Looking at Women Looking at War’ is released later this week.

And former Conservative MP Jack Lopresti tells us why he’s gone to serve in Ukraine’s military… and whether his children are happy about his decision.

Today’s episode is presented by Victoria Derbyshire and Vitaly Shevchenko.

You can join the Ukrainecast discussion on Newscast’s Discord server here: tinyurl.com/ukrainecastdiscord

‘I'd love to hear more about what's actually happening in the war now. Where are the lines stable, where is Russia still advancing, where have the Russians slowed?’ That’s a message we got from one of our listeners earlier in the week, and we thought we’d answer these questions and more.

We get a sense of what’s happening along the frontline in Ukraine right now with Matthew Savill, director of military sciences at RUSI, and we hear from a soldier whose day job is to drop bombs on Russians using drones.

Today’s episode is presented by Jamie Coomarasamy and Vitaly Shevchenko.

You can join the Ukrainecast discussion on Newscast’s Discord server here: tinyurl.com/ukrainecastdiscord

What might Donald Trump’s strategy to end the war in Ukraine look like? We speak to Fred Fleitz, a national security official in Donald Trump's first administration who's close to the President's Ukraine and Russia envoy.

We ask him to decode the latest diplomatic noises out of Washington, Moscow and Kyiv, and shed light on what we can expect from Trump’s approach, as well as the prospects of success.

Today’s episode is presented by Victoria Derbyshire and Vitaly Shevchenko.

You can join the Ukrainecast discussion on Newscast’s Discord server here: tinyurl.com/ukrainecastdiscord

President Trump has spent his first 24 hours back in the White House - having once claimed he would end the war in that time.

There’s no sign yet, but can Donald Trump provide peace? What did he say at his inauguration? And what can we learn from his first full day in the job?

Today’s episode is presented by Victoria Derbyshire, Vitaly Shevchenko and James Waterhouse.

You can join the Ukrainecast discussion on Newscast’s Discord server here: tinyurl.com/ukrainecastdiscord

Today, Donald Trump has been sworn in as the 47th US president.

He promised to unleash a blitz of executive orders, after calling for a "revolution of common sense" in Monday's inaugural address.

Victoria was joined by James Cook and Chris Mason from Newscast, Anthony Zurcher and Marianna Spring from Americast and Jonny Dymond from The Global Story to assess Trump’s first act as he became President again.

Email [email protected] with your questions and comments. You can also send us a message or voice note via WhatsApp, Signal or Telegram to +44 330 1239480

You can join the Ukrainecast discussion on Newscast’s Discord server here: tinyurl.com/ukrainecastdiscord